Chapter 14 : Unwanted Attention

Yehyun let out a small sigh while working.

It was the third day at work since the incident. He still couldn’t avoid the eyes that followed him, but at least there was less attention than the first day. But there was another reason he was sighing in secret.

[Is this Shin Yehyun’s personal number?]

A text from an unknown number. He ignored it at first, but the sender seemed to not know the meaning of giving up, persistently grating on his nerves.

[Can I ask you to contact me just once^^]

[There won’t be any difficult questions. Please, just once.]

He blocked it and half forgot about it, but somehow a message arrived at his work email.

[Hello, Shin Yehyun.]

He had no idea how they got his email. When he opened it, he was shocked. “Not just my number, but how did they get my company email address?”

[This is Song Hee-chan from Pahwa Daily who contacted you at 010-0000-0000. First of all, I apologize for contacting you this way.]

He got goosebumps and immediately closed the email, but the unease lingered. Yehyun struggled to focus on work.

So this is how Jeong feels when he’s being stalked? Feeling a sense of kinship, he picked up his phone to text Jeong.

[What are you doing? 3:57 PM]

“Yehyun, can you handle this before quitting time? It might be tight.” Not long after he put down his phone, Deputy Park dumped some documents on his desk. “Oh, you have a boyfriend, so I should let you leave on time, right? Was I being insensitive?”

“No, it’s fine.” Yehyun forced a smile. If you’re going to be considerate, either don’t give me work or don’t say that. Don’t do both. Knowing he was just testing him, Yehyun cursed him internally and took the documents. “I’ll have it done before I leave.”

Ding.

Just then, a light appeared on his phone screen.

[♡]

Seeing the heart on the screen, Deputy Park’s eyes sparkled with curiosity. “What, is it from Kang Jeong?”

Why did he keep saying Kang Jeong like that? And his voice was annoyingly loud, instantly drawing the office’s attention to Yehyun.

“Hurry up and check the message.” Deputy Park leaned in, urging him.

Why did he have to talk to him now? If he had known, he would have texted later. It was too late to regret now. Please let it be nothing. Yehyun opened his phone screen, hoping.

[♡ – Photo 4:01 PM]

[♡ – Heading back to Seoul. See you later. 4:01 PM]

Fortunately, the reply was just a typical couple’s conversation. A selfie taken in the car and a sweet message.

Deputy Park, looking even more excited than Yehyun, said, “Wow, he’s really handsome. You’re so lucky, Yehyun. A boyfriend like that.”

“Jeong is just very sweet.”

Deputy Park fussed and glanced at Yehyun’s phone screen. At least Manager Kwak was away for a moment, thankfully. Yehyun couldn’t stop him or push him away, so he just forced a smile.

“Hey, Deputy Park. Did you find the materials I asked for?”

“Huh? Oh?”

This time, Deputy Lee saved him again. At her words, Deputy Park quickly returned to his seat, and Yehyun finally had peace.

‘Thank you.’ He thanked her with a glance and stared blankly at his phone. The photo, seemingly just taken in the car, was filled with Jeong’s handsome face.

The filming location was in Chungcheong-do, wasn’t it? He heard they started shooting at dawn, so it must have been tough, but in the photo, Jeong was beaming and smiling brightly. Seeing him smile comfortably—someone he had only seen in profile photos on portal sites or in articles—felt a bit new.

“Hmm.” Staring at the photo, he made a decision and started tapping the screen.

[Save]

[Set as wallpaper]

Home screen or lock screen? The lock screen would be seen more often by people, so maybe that was better. After a moment of thought, he set the photo as his lock screen. People like Deputy Park or Chief Kim from Team 2 were too nosy, so he needed to show off this relationship.

‘Setting it as my home screen wallpaper is a bit much. It’s not like we’re college students.’

It wasn’t a real relationship, but since they were pretending to date, it couldn’t hurt to fulfill the romance he had missed out on in his last relationship.

[Where should I go? 4:10 PM]

[♡ – Should I come to your office? lol 4:10 PM]

The reply came quickly, as if he was waiting, and Yehyun hesitated. He didn’t want to avoid showing off, but what if someone spotted Jeong in front of the office and screamed?

“Absolutely not.”

[No, just send me the address and I’ll go there. You’ve been in the car a long time and must be tired, so just rest. 4:12 PM]

Shaking his head, he sent the reply and put down his phone to get back to work.

“Wow, Yehyun, you really wanted to leave on time.” After finishing the documents Deputy Park had dumped on him, Yehyun stood up a little after quitting time. It was a bit tough, but he had a date after work, so he sped through it and managed to finish quickly.

“I’m stuck with overtime. So jealous.”

“If I didn’t have plans, I would have helped. Sorry.”

“Don’t say things you don’t mean. Just go home.” Deputy Lee waved her hand. Unlike Deputy Park, who started at the same time, she was considerate. Yehyun bowed in thanks.

“Thank you. See you tomorrow.”

“Yeah, go ahead.”

Without Deputy Lee, work life would have been hell. Thinking that, Yehyun left the building.

“Excuse me.” Just then, someone with light footsteps caught up to him. Seeing a face he didn’t recognize and feeling a bad premonition, he stepped back slightly and looked at the man.

“Can I help you?”

“I’m Song Hee-chan from Pahwa Daily. I’m sorry for showing up suddenly, but…”

[This is Song Hee-chan from Pahwa Daily who contacted you at 010-0000-0000. First of all, I apologize for contacting you this way.]

The name sounded familiar. Racking his brain, he remembered it was the name in the email. “I have nothing to say.”

He probably wanted an interview. Without hesitation, he ignored him and walked past.

‘Never agree to an interview. If you do, discuss it with us first, with trusted people. It should involve Jeong, Juseok, and me.’ He remembered what Chaeryeon had emphasized when they signed the contract.

‘Journalists are good at manipulating people’s emotions. It’s not that I don’t trust you, but there’s no guarantee you won’t slip up in front of them.’

It made sense. He had agreed with Jeong’s side beforehand about interviews to avoid causing controversy or being manipulated by journalists. Of course, even without that clause, he wouldn’t have agreed to an interview with such a rude and creepy person.

“Look, I’m not a weirdo. Just a few simple questions…”

“Hey.” Yehyun looked at the persistent journalist following him. He had no intention of agreeing to an interview, but this stubborn man seemed like he would follow him endlessly. Plus, he needed to find out where his personal information had leaked.

“How did you get my phone number?”

“Oh, I thought you might be uncomfortable. But…”

“How did you get it?” Yehyun frowned.

“Well, that is…”

“You know my phone number, my work email, and even came to my office. Don’t you think that’s stalking?”

“Stalking? Please, call it dedication to work.”

Nonsense. As Yehyun frowned deeper, the journalist finally pretended to be cautious. “I think you might be surprised, but I didn’t get your information through illegal means. It was just a coincidence…”

“A coincidence that you know my phone number, work email, office location, and even my quitting time? What an amazing coincidence.” He said sarcastically, and the journalist stammered.

“No, it’s not that. An acquaintance here… Oh.” He covered his mouth, realizing he had let the source slip.

Could it be that someone from his company gave him his information? Yehyun stepped closer. “Did an acquaintance who works here sell my personal information to you?”

“No, not sell. Just as a pure favor…” The flustered journalist avoided his gaze, sweating.

So that’s where his info came from. A loose-lipped colleague. Yehyun said firmly, “I don’t like you showing up like this, and I have no intention of doing an interview. I’d appreciate it if you didn’t come again.”

“Don’t be so rigid. Just have a talk…”

“No.” He brushed past him. It was a waste of money, but since he had already received the advance for this month, taking a taxi was better to escape this lunatic.

“Taxi.” He hailed a taxi without hesitation and escaped the journalist. Even a persistent entertainment reporter like Hee-chan couldn’t chase after a moving car, so he just glared at the back of the taxi.

“Looks clueless, but he’s not easy.” Hee-chan, who had stammered like a fool in front of Yehyun, hardened his expression and clicked his tongue.

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